Siphon.



B. M. JOHNSON.

SIPHON.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 10, 1010.

Patented July 2, 1912.

ivrriEn STATES rigrnnr OFFICE.

EDWARD M. J'OH1\T SON, OF JERSEY CITY, NEW JERSEY.

SIPHON.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 2, 1912.

Application filed August 10, 1910. Serial No. 576,590.

of which the following is a specification.

The invention relates to improvements in siphons of the class designed more particularly for drawing ofi or decanting the upper' portion of a body of liquid, as, for example, the cream from a bottle of milk, without materially disturbing the lower part thereof.

One object of the invention is to provide a very efiicient and comparatively inexpensive siphon capable of positive starting action and of being readily cleaned with the use of the means by which the operation of the siphon is initiated.

The siphon of my invention comprises an .integral continuous glass tube forming the necessary two leg members connected by a curved sectionor elbow and a piston adapted to said tube secured on the end of a flexible rod having a proper degree of stiffness or rigidity adapting the same to be utilized in pushing the piston through the discharge leg and along the curved section of the siphon and in withdrawing said piston on a reverse path to initiate the flow of the liquid, said piston preferably being ofrubber or equivalent material and having flexible peripheral edges and a more or less solid central body portion molded directly on said rod and preferably a short distance from the inner end thereof, leaving a projecting flexible portion of the rod to act as a pilot in guiding the piston along the curved or elbow-portion of the siphon and preserving the flexible edges of said piston in uniform engagement wit-h the inner walls thereof.

The invention will be fully understood from the detailed description hereinafter presented, reference being had to the acc0mpanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a side elevation, partly broken away and partly in section, of a milk bottle of ordinary construction having applied thereto the siphon of my invention; Fig. 2 is a detached top view of a combined spring clip and siphon support to be applied to the top of a bottle from which it is desired to draw off liquid by means of the siphon; Fig. 3 is an enlarged detached view of the forward end of the flexible rod carrying the piston for use in the siphon, the piston be- 1ng shown in section; Flg. at is a top end View of the same; and Flg. 5 1s a corresponding view illustrating a modified construc- 0 tion of the piston and its rod.

In the drawings, 10 designates a milk bot-- tle containing milk with an upper layer of cream, as usual, 11 the siphon as a whole, 12

the combined siphon. support and spring 5 clip applied to the upper end of the bottle, 13 the piston, and 14.- the flexible rod carrying said piston.

The siphon 11 is in one integral piece of tubing, preferably glass, and comprises a vertical leg 15 for insertion in the bottle, and an outwardly and downwardly inclined leg 16 constituting the discharge member,

said legs 15, 16 being connected by a curved section or elbow 17. The vertical leg memher 15 of the siphon has upon it a closely fitting adjustable collar 18 of rubber or other suitable material adapted in applying the siphon to the bottle to rest upon a vertical sleeve 19 formed on the transverse tongue 20 of the combined clip and siphon support 12 and thereby in conjunction with said sleeve and tongue support the siphon in reasonably firm position with relation to the bottle. versely across and rests upon the edges surrounding the mouth of the bottle, and the legmember 15 of the siphon extends freely through said sleeve. The tongue 20 is held in position by means of the spring arms 21 which clasp the neck of the bottle and are preferably integral with said tongue, the entire combined siphon support and spring clip being preferably in one integral piece of sheet metal stamped and bent into the required outline. The depth to which the siphon member 15 shall enter the bottle may be regulated at will by the adjustment on said member of the collar 18, the position of said collar determining the extent of the leg member 15 which may ass downwardly through the sleeve 19 and into the bottle.

The piston 13 and its rod 14= areof spec al importance, and preferably said piston w1ll be of rubber and molded directly on the rod 14.- which will preferably be formed from a rod of wire doubled and twisted upon itself throughout the greater portion of its length, leaving the forward portion of the rod 14 as composed of a single untwisted strand,

as at, 22, and more flexible than the main body of the rod or twisted portion thereof.

The spring tongue 20 extends trans- 85 Preferably the piston 13 will be located back of the forward extremity of the rod 14 so as to leave a projecting or pilot portion 23 bf the rod extended forwardly of said piston, as shown in Figs. 1 and 3. The extreme forward end of the strand of wire from which the rod 14 is formed will preferably be bent into the shapeof an eye 24 and fastened by coiling, as at 25. At the part of the rod 14 receiving the piston 13 I preferably coil the strand of wire, as at 26, so that the piston, when molded on the wire, may enter into very firm interlocking engagement therewith. The piston 13 has a solid body portion 27 and a flexible peripheral flange 28 whose normal diameter is slightly greater than that of the bore of the siphon so that during the use of the device said flange may have a yielding pressure against the inner walls of the siphon and at all times closely bind against the same. The peripheral flange 28 extends entirely around the body portion 27 and forms a thin rim which may bend or yield laterally at any point, around the said body portion 27 which is substantially rigid or nonflexible and solid. The thin peripheral-flange 28 presents the minimum friction surface to the glass tube and easily conforms to the usual inequalities in the same. The flange 28, being thin, is capable of being easily moved along the tube while in engagement. with the inner walls thereof, and said flange is highly eflicient in creating the necessary vacuum.

In the employment of my invention the piston 13 is, by means of the rod 14, pushed upwardly through the outer leg member 16 of the siphon until said piston has passed along the curved section or elbow 17 and entered the upper end of the leg member 15, and thereupon the leg member 15 is inserted downwardly through the sleeve 19 and into the mouth of the bottle. When it is desired to start the flow of the cream from the bottle the operator will pull downwardly on the rod 14 and therebycause the piston 13 to slide out from the siphon and while doing so create a suflicient vacuum to start the flow of the cream. The piston 13 fits within the bore of the siphon with sufficient firmness to yieldingly resist its upward movement through the leg 16 and along the curved section 17 and hence it is essential that the rod 14 should possess suflicient stiffness to enable the movement of the piston. It is desirable, however, that at least the forward end of the rod 14 possess sufficient flexibility to curve around the elbow section 17 without injury either to itself or the siphon. I have found that the most satisfactory construction of the rod 14 is that illustrated in Fig. 1 in which the rod is formed of a single strand of wire having a twisted body portion and an untwisted forward end portion 22, the latter enabling the travel of the piston 13 along the elbow 17. The forwardly projecting or pilot end 23 of the rod 14 is of special importance during the movement of the piston from the leg member 16 along the elbow section '17 to the leg member 15, since during the movement of the piston along the curved surfaces of the elbow section 17 the extreme forward end of the pilot 23 will engage the surface of the glass in advance of the piston and operate to maintain the flange 28 of the piston on a substantially true transverse plane with respect to the bore of the siphon or at right angles to its walls, whereby the edges of the flange 18 are kept in substantially uniform engagement with the walls of the bore of the siphon.

I do not wish to limit my invention, in every instance, to the special construction of the rod 14 or to the employment of the pilot 23 on the forward end thereof, but it will be found that the presence of the pilot 23 is beneficial both during the use of the piston 13 for initiating the flow of the liquid "and also in employing it as a means for cleaning out the interior of the legs of the siphon, it being highly essential during the cleaning of the siphon that the edges of the flexible flange 28 of the piston be in constant contact with the entire surrounding surface of the siphon, especially when moving along the curved or elbow section 17 thereof.

In Fig. 5 I illustrate a modification of my invention in which the rod carrying the piston (numbered 30) is not provided with the pilot 23 but terminates within the body of the piston and is coiled into a stop upon which the rubber of the piston is molded. In both constructions shown in Figs. 3 and 5 the piston is secured, by molding, immovably upon the wire or rod 14.

In cleaning the siphon, the piston 13 (or 30) may be pushed up through either leg and along the curved or elbow section 17 thereof to dislodge any sediment that may have collected on the inner walls of the siphon, said piston and its rod thus serving not only ,to initiate the flow through the siphon but aid in cleaning the entire interior thereof, which is obviously a matter of vital importance. j

Another feature of the invention is that the rod 14 and piston 13 are wholly detachable from the tube of the siphon and may be readily cleansed, and in addition the cost of the entire siphon-outfit is so little that a user thereof may provide himself with several of the rods 14 and pistons 13.

One purpose of the invention is to provide an eflicient siphon composed of two entirely separable parts each of which may be readily and thoroughly cleansed.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

1. A siphon comprising a bent tube forming two leg-members connected by an integral curved or elbow-section, and a piston and piston-rod therefor wholly detachable from said tube, said rod having a forward flexible portion provided with a piston having asubstantially rigid body and a thin flexible peripheral flange extending around the same to engage the walls of thetube and create the vacuum.

2. A siphon comprising a bent tube form ing two leg-members connected by an integral curved or elbow-section, and a piston and piston-rod therefor Wholly detachable from said tube, said rod having a forward flexible portion provided with a piston having a substantially rigid body and a thin flexible peripheral flange extending around the same to engage the walls of the tube and create the vacuum, and said piston being an integral piece of rubber molded on a coil of and thereby secured to said rod.

3. A siphon comprising a bent tube forming two leg-members connected by an integral curved or elbow-section, and a piston and piston-rod therefor Wholly detachable from said tube, said rod having a forward flexible portion provided with a piston having a flexible peripheral flange to engage the Walls of the tube, and said rod being projected forwardly of said piston to create a pilot for guiding the piston forwardly around said elbow-section of the siphon.

' 4. A siphon comprising a bent tube forming two leg-members connected by an integral curved or elbow-section, and a piston and piston-rod therefor wholly detachable from said tube, said rod being a strand of wire doubled and twisted upon itself throughout the greater portion of its length and leaving at its forward end a flexible section on which said piston is secured, and said piston being an integral piece of rubber and having a substantially rigid body and a thin flexible peripheral flange extending around the same to engage the walls of the tube and create the vacuum.

5. A siphon structure comprising a bent tube forming two leg-members connected by an integral curved or elbow-section, a piston and piston-rod therefor wholly detachable from the tube, a close-fitting adjustable collar on the vertical leg of the siphon, and

a combined siphon support and clip to be.

applied to the neck of a bottle and comprising arms to clasp said neck and a transverse tongue to cross the mouth of the bottle and having a vertical sleeve to receive said vertical leg and afford a stop for said collar.

6. In a siphon a flexible rod and a piston near one end thereof, said piston comprising a substantially rigid body and a thin flexible flange arranged to uniformly engage the inner walls of the siphon, and said rod comprising a portion adjacent said piston of greater flexibility than the remaining portion of said rod and integral therewith. Signed at New York city in the county of New York and State of New York this 9th day of August A. D. 1910.

EDWARD M. JOHNSON. Witnesses:

HERMAN Gus'row, CoRALIE GHoA'rE- 

